1. Field
The present invention relates generally to electronic commerce systems and methods and, more specifically, to characterization of the reputations of buyers and sellers in an electronic commerce system.
2. Description
Trust plays a significant part in any “on-line” or electronic commercial transaction. When a consumer enters into a commercial transaction over a public communications network such as the Internet, the consumer makes an assumption that once a transaction occurs that the merchandise will in fact be delivered or that payment will be received. This is in stark contrast to an “in-person” transaction where the merchandise is typically within reach of the consumer at the point of sale or cash or checks physically change hands. While the problem of effectively establishing trust pervades all Internet commercial transactions, it is particularly acute in the case of person-to-person electronic commerce.
Person-to-person electronic commerce, as epitomized by on-line private party auction web sites, lacks the trust mechanisms prevalent in business-to-person commerce. Individuals, for example, may be comfortable buying merchandise from an established and well-known on-line merchant because of the merchant's reputation, but buying from a private party seller is more problematic. Private party sellers lack the ability to create for themselves a reputation that will instill a sense of trust in a potential buyer. Various private party auction web sites have addressed this concern through the means of subjective reputation feedback systems.
A subjective reputation feedback system, typically provided by the auction site itself, allows person-to-person transaction participants to provide feedback on their transaction partners. In theory, satisfied participants rate each other highly, dissatisfied participants rate each other poorly, and potential new transaction participants can use these ratings as a way to gauge the trustworthiness of someone they have not done business with themselves. In practice, these systems work fairly well, but are hindered by the subjective and sometimes vague nature of the feedback. Collusion, animosity, and “you-scratch-my-back, I'll-scratch-yours” scenarios abound in these systems, calling into question their essential validity.
Therefore, there is a need for a method and system for objectively characterizing the reputation of buyers and sellers in person-to-person electronic commerce.